


The Last Night

by fandomgeek14



Category: Fallout 3
Genre: Fluff and Angst, I’m back playing fallout 3, Swearing, and I needed the angst, i accidentally killed the overseer, the lone wanderer has a lot of feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-02
Updated: 2020-06-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:40:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24505567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomgeek14/pseuds/fandomgeek14
Summary: Clarissa Hamilton-Matthews (or more commonly known as Clary Hamilton or the Lone Wanderer) has got her dad back. Except their journey to Rivet City doesn’t go to plan and James is forced to take a rest for his daughters sake. This thankfully gives them more bonding time, leading the truth of the Lone Wanderer’s time away from her dad comes to light.
Relationships: Catherine/James (Fallout), Charon (Fallout) & Female Lone Wanderer, Female Lone Wanderer & Jonas Palmer, James & Female Lone Wanderer
Kudos: 5





	The Last Night

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry if it’s not that good, I’m Not feeling 100% and that I find does have an impact on my writing as a whole. This might become a series later as I have a lot of ideas.

“You know, you really should be sleeping” 

The Lone Wanderer’s dad pointed out as he sat down next to her by the fire as she watched Charon keep an eye out for danger. 

Clary hummed in acknowledgement at this statement but had no intention of rectifying what she was doing. 

It had been getting dark by the time they’d stepped out of Vault 112, and made their way along the road to Rivet City, with Clary’s ghoulish friend helping them out, and the roads were of no means safe, so of course they were bound to run into Raiders at some point or another, which is exactly what happened. To get rid of them Clary had formed a plan, a reckless plan that involved shooting a car engine with her gun and timing it to explode when most of the raiders were near enough to the vehicle. She’d told Charon to cover her dad, and set it in motion, surprisingly, it had worked, except when the car exploded she was too close to the vehicle and got knocked back from the blast, being thrown a few feet back and into the hard road below their feet, knocked unconscious. James had managed to carry his daughter to safety as Charon had fought off the rest of the raiders, killing them. James has decided it was best to set up camp after administrating Clary with a couple of Stimpacks. So that was where they were now, with the nineteen year old laying slumped against what remained of a house that appeared to have been knocked down right before before the bombs dropped, with her father right at her side and her ghoul friend on look out. 

“If you don’t mind me asking, what is the exact relationship between you two?” Her father questioned, referring to Charon, Clary glanced at her father, his greying hair surprisingly neat for being out in the wasteland but his beard, was less so. She hesitated, _oh boy how to explain this situation without sounding like a slave-owner._

“I purchased his contract-”

“So he’s a slave?” James raised an eyebrow. _Step one- avoid sounding like a slave owner failed._

“-I haven’t finished” Clary interrupted “I bought Charon’s contract, but only because his previous employer was treating him horribly. He’s not my slave or servant or anything, he’s my friend, that’s it, he’s under the impression that I own him despite me telling him I don’t- I’m not honouring his contract, he’s free, he just wanted to go with me regardless” Clary said “he’s my friend” 

_That was the truth after all._ She just really wasn’t good at explaining things.

Her father had seemingly got what she was saying though , that Charon felt obligated to serve her but, in no way was he her slave, and his daughter was trying to teach him that he wasn’t bound to her or obligated to serve her in any way. 

“I don’t know how you could have been so reckless, putting yourself in danger like that- it’s going to take a bit longer to get to Rivet City now”

Oh here we go, no how are you? No how are you feeling Clary? Is that what it was now? She was now always going to come second to an idea, a project?

“Bastard” Clary muttered under her breath 

“Clary-” 

“You utter Bastard”

“ Clarissa”  her father’s eyes narrowed at his daughter’s use of language she never used to swear unintentionally at anyone, let alone her own dad. Something had to have been bothering her. That’s when it all came to a head, all the resentment she had felt towards her dad spilling out into one sentence, leaving a bitter taste in her mouth.

“How could you leave me like that? What the hell were you thinking?” 

There was a pause as James processed what she had just asked him. Realising that his daughter had not taken him leaving easily, as he knew would happen deep down in his heart, his daughter was heartbroken at the idea that he would leave her without saying goodbye. 

He sighed, his soft expression on his face contrasting his daughters hardened expression. 

“I wanted you to be safe. I didn’t want this for you- a life out here in this god forsaken warzone. I couldn’t tell you what I was doing because I didn’t want you following me” He explained “A plan which clearly was not as successful as I imagined it would be”

Clary’s expression turned from one from anger to one of hurt, since when did he know what was best for her? Since when did he have the right to dictate how she should live her life? Since the entire Vault had decided to lie to their entire offspring apparently- did she mean so little to him that he’d choose a dead woman’s dream over their own daughter?

“Is this about mum? Are you trying so hard because of what happened to her?”

“Oh my daughter. If only you could have known how much it meant to her. She believed in the work we are doing and was so determined to see it through. She gave up so much for the project. We all did, and I don’t want that to have been for nothing” 

Clary slumped back in defeat. She’d gotten an answer to her questions but not the one she was after, her father had been ready to throw away his only living connection to his mother for the sake of her dream, which was something she’d have to live with, she’d have to live with the fact she’d come second, to some kind of project she didn’t know anything about. And even though her father would deny that fact- say that she’d always come first- it sure felt like she didn’t but- she supposed she was okay with that. If it meant she’d get her father back. That was an okay reality, to live in. 

“So what exactly is this ‘Project Purity’?” She sighed conceding to her father’s view of things. He smiled, realising that she was now able to know the truth of it all. 

“It started as an idea, really. Remember the bible passage your mother loved so much? Free, clean water for everyone. What a difference it could make in the lives of everyone here in the Wastes” 

“Over time, the idea took the form of a purifier. Not like the one in the Vault, though. This one was gigantic, capable of purifying millions of gallons of water at once. We used the old Jefferson Memorial for the location, right on DC’s Tidal Basin. Someday soon, I hope you’ll see it work” 

Clary went quiet. She wanted to see what her father had been working on, see her mothers dream, truly she did, but she couldn’t help but realise that it would be built on not only the dreams or her mother but the bloodshed that could have been prevented if her father had just stayed in the Vault or even just raised her on the surface. And as if on cue, her father unknowingly approached the topic of bloodshed with an innocent sentence of explanation. 

“Jonas was supposed to tell you everything” James spoke “once I had gone. He was supposed to tell you everything, get you to understand why I left”

Clary remained silent and looked down at the dusty ground beneath her. Her eyes started to burn as she remembered what had happened In the Vault to the man in question. How was she going to tell her dad that his apprentice, the man she’d grown up seeing as a brother, was dead?

“Dad” Clary‘s voice shook, the tears that were threatening to rise to the surface“Jonas is dead” 

James watched as Clary pulled out the glasses that once belonged to one of her only friends in the Vault from her Vault suit pocket, and glanced at her dad, who was saddened by the news, hurt at the news of the passing of one of their closest friends, His voice was unusually quiet as he spoke 

“What happened?”

“I-I don’t know- I think- I think the guards must have got him before he could reach me- the overseer- it was like a switch flipped- he wanted to get rid of all those he suspected of helping you- he ordered the security to go after Jonas- then me, hell he even interrogated Amata for helping me escape-What kind of a father does that to his own daughter?” 

“Clary” Her dad had noticed her subconsciously fiddling with their lost friend’s glasses and cleared his throat remaining strong for his only child “this is not your fault” 

“If I had just found him in time- if I’d have stayed up instead of going to bed-“ 

“It’s my fault, I thought the Overseer would only blame me and leave you and Jonas alone” 

Jonas’ dead body was still fresh in the mind of the teenager. But she hated that image, she wanted the image of the Jonas that would play Doctor with her, or talk to her when she was down and her father wasn’t around, or race her down the halls of the Vault or sometimes put his glasses on her as a laugh because they looked big on her as a kid and it was funny and in return she’d tease him about his bad eyesight. Not the Jonas riddled with bullets, feeling guilty over his death. But it also wasn’t just Jonas she felt guilty over- there was a few other things she felt guilty over as well. 

“I killed him”

“Pardon?” 

“I killed the Overseer” Clary said suddenly “I just- swung when the overseer came at me whilst I was rescuing Amata and I hit him too hard, and now Amata hates me” 

“You killed him in self defence”

“My best  friend hates me dad, Jonas is dead, nobody wants me in the Vault anymore, I killed all those people in the simulation- it hurts dad”

James looked at his daughter, noticing that her face was now stained with tears, she’d gone through a lot- things had happened that she thought was her cross to bear when it was his. None of this would have happened had it been for him, he’d hurt his daughter and there was nothing that he could do to stop the pain that he suspected an deeper than anybody knew. But he knew how to elevate it, at least a little. He wrapped his arms around her scooping her up into a hug just like he used to do as a child, as she sobbed relentlessly against him.

“I-I just want the pain to stop”

“Shh, I know” he whispered soothingly brushing his hand against the back of her head like he used to do when she was little “I’m sorry, honey, I really am” 

“Dad?” She sniffled against him 

“Yes” 

“I love you” 

“I Love you too sweetheart” her father replied “Now try and get some rest”

Clary closed her eyes, exhausted from the emotions she had felt, finally drifting off to sleep in the safety of her father’s arms. Realising that actually, he did still care about her she had one thought running through her mind. She had a lot of walking do tomorrow, but, for now she was just glad to have her dad back and she wasn’t going to let him leave her like that ever again, even if she had to put herself in danger to do it. She was never letting him out of her sight again, she promised herself that and if she couldn’t do that, she promised that whatever happened, that she’d see his and her mother’s dream come to fruition.  
She swore to it on her mother’s grave.


End file.
